Enrique Tarrio, the former national chairman of the right-wing extremist group known as the Proud Boys, was sentenced to 22 years in prison for seditious conspiracy related to his role during the pro-Trump insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021.

On Tuesday afternoon (September 5), Judge Timothy Kelly handed down the ruling in a District Court in Washington, D.C. Tarrio’s sentence marks the longest punishment given to someone involved with the planning or execution of the insurrection. The Department of Justice (DOJ) had asked the judge to deliver a prison sentence of 33 years to Tarrio, who is of Cuban descent.

During sentencing, Tarrio apologized for the “pain and suffering” he caused on January 6 and promised to have “nothing to do with politics, groups, activism or rallies” again.

“I have always tried to hold myself to a higher standard and I failed,” he said. “I held myself morally above others, and this trial has shown me how wrong I was.”

Since the insurrection, the DOJ has charged more than 1,100 defendants for their actions on January 6 in which Trump supporters attempted to stop the 2020 presidential election certification. After Tarrio and his co-defendants were found guilty in May, U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland said they played a “central role” in “setting into motion the unlawful events of that day.”

As described by the DOJ, “On Jan. 6, 2021, the defendants directed, mobilized, and led a group of Proud Boys and other members of the crowd onto the Capitol grounds, leading to dismantling of metal barricades, destruction of property, breaching of the Capitol building, and assaults on law enforcement. During and after the attack, Tarrio and his co-defendants claimed credit for what had happened on social media and in an encrypted chat room.”

Last week, Judge Kelly sentenced co-defendants Ethan Nordean to 18 years in prison; Dominic Pezzola to 10 years; Joseph Biggs to 17 years; and Zachary Rehl to 15 years. Charles Donohoe pled guilty last year to conspiracy and assaulting officers. Federal sentencing guidelines call for a 7–8-year prison term based on his plea agreement.